3 moms, 3 girls, 6 boys, and a lot of fun

“I think that the best thing we can do for our children is to allow them to do things for themselves, allow them to be strong, allow them to experience life on their own terms, allow them to take the subway… let them be better people, let them believe more in themselves.”
― C. JoyBell C.

Had a great time today introducing Sara and her boys to the Mica Mines trail. It was the first sunny and warm day we’ve had for awhile. We still wore jackets and the shadows were chilly, but the kids didn’t complain.

The fun of today was centered around the 9 kids we had in-tow. I had brought 4 (my two boys, my daughter, and her two friends); Sara had her two boys; and Holly had her two boys. Neither Holly nor Sara had done the trail before, so that was fun, too.

Right off the bat we could tell some of the kids were a little tired. So I pulled out the gummy bears and told them all they were special “energy bears” that made them feel extra strong and hike really fast. Totally worked.

Another challenge was when the boys followed each other around an alcove with a slopey ledge. Connor couldn’t do it and ended up in the water, mired in mud. When he stepped out his shoes stayed in the muck under a foot of freezing water. Poor boy got teary quick, and I got to play mommy-rescue pulling him, his shoes, and his attitude out of the mud and restoring them to a more hike-able form.

When we got to the “mine” the kids had a bunch of fun freaking the moms out with their daring antics climbing and running and cutting their fingers and knees. They really did great!

Climbing on rocksObligatory selfieCan you count all 11 peeps?Sara and Emmett